The entrance to the hamlet is via the wooden guard tower (1) which is approached by a log path . The logs protect the soft ground from the wear and tear of horses and carts. The wooden pallisade (2) is about eight feet tall and the closely spaced logs are carved to a spike. It was originally built to protect the people from maurauding bands of orcs and goblins a generation ago but it has been some time since the last attack and some of the logs have rotted at the base and need replacing.
Cíndan owns the water mill (3) that stands beside the Barnafae River. He also bakes bread and hires out boats for people wishing to travel along the river. The Druid's Circle (4) set atop the steep rise of Índan Hill is a rough circle of eight stones around a larger flat stone. It is here that the druid Denelrond conducts his rituals. The circle is ancient, far older than the settlement and is said to be a seat of power. Denelrond is also the local healer and barber-surgeon and as such is much respected.
The bridge (5) across the river is a recent construction, the last was swept away in the floods that followed heavy rain a year or so ago. Cíndan's mill was also heavily damaged in the flood and it was some time before he could start milling again.
The farm (6) is owned by the wealthy merchant Moromorn who is the closest that the hamlet has to a lord of the manor. He tends to be aloof and is rarely seen by the rest of the people of Pharanyas, apart from those who work his lands and his personal servants.
The market (7) is held once a week and farmers from outlying thorpes and farmsteads bring goods to trade and sell. The majority of the stalls deal in agricultural produce (grain and vegetables), dairy goods (a fine cheese is made by the cheesewright Arathrúth (9)) and livestock. Cíndan's wife produces a variety of pies and pastries that are well recieved. In the autumn and winter cider from Moromorn's orchards is mulled and sold by the cup, a welcome treat on a cold afternoon.
Near the guard tower stands Marathroch's smithy (10) he produces and repairs farm implements, reshoes horses but is not skilled in the manufacture of weapons and armour. He will have a go at repairing these but he warns that he is likely to do more harm than good.
Baragir is a leatherworker and cobler (11). He buys the leather in as there is not the space for a tannery in Pharanyas. He makes shores and boots that are sturdy rather than fancy. He has been known to turn his hands to making padded leather jerkins and at a pinch he may be able to make studded leather armour as well.
Barrels for Moromorn's cider and the ale produced in the The Stones Inn (8) are produced by Dandarin the cooper (12) He is a skilled worker and will turn his hand to anything if the price is right or he finds it interesting. It was he that worked long days and nights to get the mill wheel repaired and helped with the rebuilding of the bridge.
The elven potter Glóredhel sells her wares as far away as Souram itself, the clay of the river valley is particularly fine grained. She has a good relationship with Baragal the apothecary (14) who uses her pots for his potions and simples. Baragal also works closely with Engril the dyer (16). The richly coloured cloths are turned into fine clothes by his wife. Moromorn's wife and daughters have commissioned many a ball gown from her.
The large, dead oak tree that stanks on a small knoll to the north east of the hamlet is known as the Hanging Tree (15). It was here that a dozen elves were hanged by the Souram army in the war that followed the withdrawl of the old empire. It is said that the tree withered and died soon afterwards and nothing grows within the spread of its branches. The bodies were left to rot and fragments of bone can still be found in the earth around the tree's roots.
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c. A.D. Jones 24/12/02